After preparing the corn, Ye Fei used his lighter to start a fire. He then broke off several branches from the large tree, skewered the corn with them, and began roasting it over the flames.
Though it was his first time roasting corn, Ye Fei’s technique was quite decent.
In no time, the corn was ready. He gently peeled back the few layers of husk he had left on, and a natural, fragrant aroma wafted into the air, stimulating the appetites of both of them.
However, the first ear of corn, which had been husked early and roasted with extra heat, turned out blackened.
Although it was cooked through, its appearance left much to be desired.
But Ye Fei didn’t mind. He handed the better-looking ones to Liu Yiru and took a big bite of the blackened corn, saying with a smile, "Not bad at all!"
"Give me some of that too," Liu Yiru said. In fact, three ears of corn were more than enough for the two of them.
She knew that Ye Fei’s decision to eat the blackened one first was actually a way of "getting even" for her.
This small gesture warmed her heart. Though it was just a simple ear of corn, it now held a different significance for her, and she felt an urge to share it with him.
"Sure!"
Ye Fei didn’t refuse. He broke off a small piece and handed it to Liu Yiru. With her internal strength, she wouldn’t have any trouble digesting such coarse food, even if it were worse.
The two of them quickly finished off the ear of corn through their joint efforts.
Afterward, they looked at each other and burst into laughter. Their mouths were now rimmed with black, making them look quite amusing.
"You naughty boy, how dare you laugh at me!" Liu Yiru knew from Ye Fei’s smile that she must look the same as him. She playfully scolded and picked up a glass of freshly poured orange juice, splashing it at him.
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Ye Fei, caught off guard, was drenched from head to toe.
Watching the black on his face mix with the orange juice and turn into a big, blotchy mess, Liu Yiru couldn’t help but giggle coquettishly.
"Mom, that’s so mean! You got my whole face dirty!" Ye Fei complained.
"What? Not satisfied?" Liu Yiru thought to herself, "Didn’t you also get my face covered in stuff that time?" But she wouldn’t say that to Ye Fei. Instead, she picked up the glass again and threatened, "If you’re not satisfied, here’s more!"
"Mercy!" Ye Fei jumped up and scrambled to the side, trying to escape.
"Where do you think you’re going?" Liu Yiru laughed and chased after him, the sound of their carefree laughter filling the small riverbank.
It wasn’t until Ye Fei was panting heavily from exhaustion that Liu Yiru let him go.
The two of them walked together to the riverbank, intending to wash their faces with the clear river water.
Liu Yiru squatted down and cupped some water in her hands, about to wash her face, when she suddenly froze. Looking at her reflection in the river, she couldn’t believe it was truly herself.
Could she really be this happy?
Why hadn’t she felt this way in the nearly twenty years that had passed?
She glanced over at Ye Fei, who was splashing water on his face vigorously. Liu Yiru knew it was all because of him.
Only when she was with him, and especially when they were alone, could she feel this carefree.
At that moment, she was even tempted to keep going like this with him, never to return home.
But could she really?
Liu Yiru asked herself, knowing it was impossible. Although she could easily let go of her career and possessions, what about Ye Yunqi? She was also a part of her, a piece of her own flesh and blood.
And then there were Ye Siqi and the others, who were like sisters to her, and little Siqi—everything that neither she nor he could bear to give up.
Thinking of all this, Liu Yiru’s heart inevitably sank again. She no longer had the same enthusiasm as before, and even though Ye Fei tried to cheer her up, noticing her change, she couldn’t recapture that earlier feeling.
Generally, a woman’s thoughts are impossible for a man to fathom.
However, ever since that unexpected incident, Ye Fei found that he and Liu Yiru had developed a kind of mental connection, similar to the one he used to have with his younger sister.
This one-sided intuition allowed him to quickly understand the source of Liu Yiru’s worries. He thought to himself, "It’s almost over; everything will be fine soon. My goddess, rest assured, I will make you as happy as you were just now, every single day!"
This confidence wasn’t misplaced. Ye Fei understood that his mother’s unhappiness stemmed from two things: first, her true joy could only be found in his company, and second, her concern that her family wouldn’t understand her.
As long as he addressed these two issues, she would be able to let go of all her worries.
Solving this didn’t seem difficult at all. Ye Yunqi and the two aunts were sure to support him.
Once he "convinced" the three elder sisters to understand each other, everything would fall into place.
Although this might seem a bit underhanded, as if he were using his doting sisters for his own ends, Ye Fei didn’t see it that way. He loved them just as much and was determined to make their lives incredibly happy because of him.
With her spirits somewhat dampened, Liu Yiru reluctantly accompanied Ye Fei for a little while longer before they packed up and continued on their journey together.
Since they had traveled slowly in the morning and the northern sky darkened earlier, by the time night fell, they had entered the northeastern part of Long Country but were still quite a distance from Changbai Mountain.
Liu Yiru had wanted to drive through the night, but Ye Fei stopped her. Even though he knew she wouldn’t be tired from driving all night, he still felt concerned for her.
Liu Yiru gladly accepted Ye Fei’s thoughtfulness. However, this place was really remote.
After getting off the highway, they hadn’t seen even a small village in the half hour they had been driving.
"Mom, there seems to be a small river up ahead. How about we camp here for the night? We have a tent with us, and it’s a great spot to enjoy the night view," Ye Fei suggested, having been looking around for a while.
After adjusting her mood throughout the afternoon, Liu Yiru felt much better. Seeing the beautiful, starry sky, she couldn’t help but feel nostalgic.
In the city, especially in a highly developed metropolis like Wanghai City, such a sky was impossible to see. The sky there was completely obscured by various pollutants.
"Sure, and I happened to bring a fishing rod. Maybe we can catch a few fish and roast them," Liu Yiru said with a smile.
"Aren’t we going to Changbai Mountain? Why did you bring a fishing rod?" Ye Fei asked, puzzled.
"Because we’re going to Changbai Mountain, that’s why I brought the fishing rod. Isn’t there a big water monster in the Tianchi Lake? I thought I’d try to catch it," Liu Yiru joked. In reality, she had prepared the fishing rod in case they found Bingling Grass growing in a place she couldn’t reach with her lightness kung fu, or if there were any spiritual beasts she couldn’t deal with. She could use the fishing line to hook the Bingling Grass from a higher place.
Since "Bingling Grass" was something Liu Yiru and Dongfang Ruolan had made up, Ye Fei didn’t connect it with the fishing rod. However, he knew his mother was teasing him.
Although he didn’t understand why she would bring a fishing rod for no reason, he could easily guess that it was a preparation to help him recover, so he didn’t ask further.
They stopped the car by the river and found a spacious spot.
With the help of the car’s headlights, they set up the simple tent.
Besides this one, they had brought a more professional tent for use in the mountains. Changbai Mountain was too cold, and a simple tent wouldn’t do.
Since setting up the professional tent was quite troublesome, Liu Yiru didn’t bother with it.
After all, they had slept together last night, and it wouldn’t make a difference if they did so again tonight. It was also a good opportunity to treat Ye Fei.
After everything was set up, the two of them didn’t rest immediately. Instead, they sat by the river and cast the fishing rod that Liu Yiru had brought. However, neither of them was really focused on fishing.
"Ye Fei, are you cold?" Liu Yiru asked after a while. The northern night was still quite chilly. She herself had strong internal strength to keep her warm, but Ye Fei had lost all his power. She was worried he might catch a cold.
Even Liu Yiru didn’t feel cold, and Ye Fei, whose strength was much greater than hers, certainly wouldn’t feel cold either. However, he didn’t want to miss this opportunity, so he replied, "A little."
"Then come sit closer. Mom will use her internal strength to warm you up," Liu Yiru said, not wanting her son to be cold. She didn’t mind expending her internal strength.
As for why she didn’t simply ask him to go back to the tent, she couldn’t quite explain it herself.
Perhaps it was because opportunities to be alone with him like this were rare.
Although being in the tent would make them even closer and more intimate, Liu Yiru preferred this kind of spiritual closeness.
"Okay," Ye Fei responded, moving closer to Liu Yiru.
Instead of snuggling into her embrace as she had expected, he wrapped his arm around her slender waist, gently pulled her over, and let her lean back against him.
Liu Yiru didn’t object to Ye Fei’s action.
She wriggled slightly in his arms to find the most comfortable position, then rested her head on his shoulder. She tilted her beautiful face upward, gazing at the starry sky, and murmured as if speaking to herself or asking Ye Fei, "What do you think, what is life really for?"